Papa Kakashi!
by ByEvelyn
Summary: "His bones are…shrinking? Just what kind of messed up Jutsu is this?" Apparently, it was the type to turn a fully grown teenager into a kid- a ridiculously cute kid with eyes like a freaking angel. The parental vibes in Kakashi practically screamed. He wasn't entirely sure that was a good thing. Kaka!Daddy. Chibi!Naru
1. Chapter 1: Well, he's not dead?

**Papa Kakashi!**

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**OKAY- I need help. Which summary?**

**A **-"His bones are…shrinking? Just what the hell kind of Jutsu is this?" Apparently, it was the type to turn a fully grown teenager into a kid. A ridiculously cute kid with eyes like a freaking angel. The parental vibes ran through Kakashi like a disease. He wasn't entirely sure that was a good thing. Daddy!Kakashi, Cute!Naruto.

OR

**B**- Naruto was cute enough when he was a rambunctious teenager- so what would happen if a forbidden Jutsu turned him into a four year old boy? He'd have everyone (especially Kakashi,) wrapped around his adorable, chubby little fingers. That's what. Daddy!Kakashi, Cute!Naruto.

OR

**C**- "Kakashi, Naruto, is h-he?" Sakura couldn't bear to finish her question. "Well, he's not dead." Kakashi winced as a collective sigh of relief- and more than a few sobs- ran through the waiting room. "…But he has spontaneously transformed into a child." All eyes turned towards him. "Wait, what?" Daddy!Kakashi, Cute!Naruto.

**A/N:** I'm not sure what I'm doing about timeline. I might make it just before the fourth Shinobi war and just make my own turn of events. I kind of want most of it to be in Kohona, you know, Naruto leading the childhood he's never had with Kakashi (fangirl squeal) as his surrogate daddy. I want it to be filled with cuteness and emotional jazz3 (providing I can write emotionally.)

I've definitely made it after Pein's defeat. So he's the lil hero of Kohona still I might make the completely new course of events- I hate the way Sasuke has turned recently. Besides, I think the fact Naru would turn into a four year old would make a biiiiiiiiit of an impact.

**Thoughts and opinions? Tell me what you want to happen! I'll take it all into account! TY3**

**Buuuut, no flames seriously! haha, :(**

**Pretty short first chapter, but it's mostly just an into.**

**I'll be uploading Make Love, Not war tomorrow:)**

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**Chapter one- Well, he's not dead?**

He wasn't sure if he could put up with the searing agony for much longer.

_Is this death?_

He was more than terrified; the voices screaming around him seemed to agree.

_I'm…so scared…_

"What the fuck's happening, Tsunade?"

_Is that…sensei? _

"Pin him down! Shizune, give me the damn morphine!"

He screamed against the restraints; the comforting hands smoothing down his blood-sodden hair did nothing against the panic and pain.

_I'm dying…I don't- I don't want to go!_

Tsunade shakily sighed with relief as the morphine started to run its course through his system. She glanced at Kakashi; the normally reserved and aloof Jounin was practically shaking with worry. His breath caught in his throat as a clammy hand weakly grasped his wrist with urgency. He looked up to see his student's pure blue eyes boring into him, a sense of betrayal and desperation clear in their depths.

_Help…help me, sensei...I-_

He held the eye contact until the blonde's eyes fluttered closed, he breathed in a long awaited breath that he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. His beloved student was now in a medically induced coma. Kakashi had seen many things whilst he was ANBU; things that would make the strongest of men feel absolutely revolted. He was an ANBU for double the recommended time, he was never affected by normally sickening sights- yet, he had the feint suspicion he was going to throw up any second.

"Hokage-sama." Kakashi eventually choked out. The disrespect from the heat of the moment was seemingly forgotten. He almost gagged again as he felt the bones cracking and grinding underneath his hand, where he held Naruto's wrist gently. He stilled and wrenched his hand away from the wrist as if he'd be burnt. The bones were re-arranging and compressing. "His bones are…shrinking? Just what kind of messed up Jutsu _is _this?"He was ushered away from Naruto's side by Shizune. The hospital's best medics were gathered in the emergency room, doing their utmost to save Naruto's life. Kakashi felt utterly useless, he hated the feeling. The last time he'd felt the same emotion was when Obito had died, and that almost destroyed him.

Tsunade was feeling the same. She'd worked hundreds of cases in the course of her life; but with one of her precious people on the surgical bed, the pressure felt like it was slowly killing her. Naruto was her surrogate brother, she do anything for her little 'gaki'. Everyone in the room felt the same choking tension; the hero of Kohona lay dead still on a steel surgical table covered with his own blood, his features were being pulverised from within. They were all cringing- and thanking Kami that he was unconscious. After they made sure his vitals were secure, Tsunade finally spoke.

"I think…I have an idea." She shook her head; it was such a ludicrous theory. "You said the attacker cast some sort of Jutsu after Naruto struck him down?" Her upper lip curled with disgust. Akatsuki, or what was left, hadn't ceased hiring a number of forces to capture the boy. Kakashi sharply nodded.

"I didn't see it. One second Naruto had taken him out and the next…they both were on the floor, the other Shinobi was dead and Naruto was…writhing. He was a missing-nin from the Mist; I know that much from his Hitai-ate. He was extremely skilled." He paused and scowled beneath his mask. They had just finished a mission. It was easy enough, delivering scrolls to an outpost just outside the village. Sakura and Sai had been busy; it was just the two of them. _So close to Kohona- they're getting bolder._

"The missing nin- how did he die? Did he die straight away?" The silver haired Jounin eyed Tsunade curiously. Where was she going with this?

"Yes. As soon as he hit the ground." Tsunade's expression darkened.

"In your own opinion, should he have died that quickly from his injuries?" Kakashi didn't hesitate in answering; he'd thought it was strange as well.

"No. It would have taken several minutes for him to bleed to death."

"So, in theory, he could have cast a Jutsu on Naruto and given his own life, effective immediately?"

"I-Yes." Kakashi still didn't see what relevance this had- in his defence, he had never heard of the Jutsu she was considering. _I want to know what the hell's happening to my student!_

"I don't think this type of Jutsu had been cast in my lifetime, well, until now. By the way his bones are...crushing themselves and re-forming, it can only mean one thing. His aging is reversing."

"He's becoming younger? How the hell's that even possible?" He quickly glanced at Naruto, the only distinguishable feature being his whisker marks and the shock of blonde hair. The rest of him was mush.

"I've only ever heard stories of this Jutsu. They used it in the mist for their leaders- not recently either. It was supposed to be some type of immortality technique; unfortunately it's rather…unpredictable." Her head was beginning to throb with pain. The only reason she knew of this technique was from her immortality-obsessed former teammate, Orochimaru. The thought made her feel sick. _Damn, I could kill for a drink_.

"Unpredictable?"

"Hm. It completely reverses aging, meaning if you kept casting it on the same person, they'd stay young forever. The caster's dies though; it's too much for their body to handle."

"Alright, so what did you mean by unpredictable?" Kakashi still wasn't totally convinced; but he had heard weirder things. He also didn't like the way it seemed to click into place. Tsunade's expression became grave.

"You can't control how young they become. There was one case that was recorded in a poem; the person apparently vanished into nothing." Her brows furrowed and she looked at the blonde worriedly. Kakashi swore.

"We can fix this, right?" Tsunade shook her head.

"I can try, but I have no idea where to even start. I don't know what seals were used, the nature of the Jutsu, absolutely nothing!" She felt the urge to punch something, but withheld it.

Their conversation ceased as Naruto's body started to convulse. Tsunade barged past the staff to Naruto's side, Kakashi grudgingly stayed at the back of the room out of the way. The feeling of uselessness started to creep back in.

"Kami, I don't believe it!" Tsunade was in awe. All the personnel watched with morbid fascination as her theory proved to be correct. It was entirely different from just talking about it; the boy was transforming right in front of their eyes. Skin and bones shrunk and reformed, his limbs grew shorter and his face became less defined. A soft green glow covered his body as his skin seemed to rejuvenate, all signs of battle disappearing from his body. A violent tremor of alarm ran through her, she ripped his shirt off with a copious amount of strength, not bothering to hold back the loud sigh of relief as the seal was revealed to be perfectly intact. After another five minutes of violent convulsing, Naruto lay still.

Tsunade checked him over. She wasn't entirely surprised to find he was perfectly healthy, in fact, he was perfect. His skin was practically glowing and his lips were soft and moist. His short, chubby limbs were strong, the muscles and tendons seemed perfectly healthy. Nothing would have seemed amiss, if in front of her, didn't lay the body of a four year old boy. She almost smiled at how peaceful and innocent he looked, especially with the way his clothes dwarfed him. She couldn't help but lightly rub her hand on his cheek. Naruto's skin was baby-soft; it was ridiculous, it wasn't_ supposed_ to be soft. He'd just started to get s_tubble_, for goodness sake! _And, He's so…small. _

"This is _bad_." Kakashi's panicked voice shook everyone from the awed stupor. Then the full force of the situation hit the Hokage. Naruto was so _goddamn_ vulnerable. "Akatsuki didn't send the Nin to capture Naruto- they sent him to do _this_! Naruto can't _fight_ in this form!" Another horrifying thought ran through him. "What about his memories? Does he forget? He's a sixteen year old boy in a kid's body!" He forced himself to take a deep breath to calm down. His posture relaxed but his eyes were still severely serious. "He's going to freak out ... Oh boy." He was so damn relieved his student wasn't dead, he wasn't sure if he could've taken another loss; especially not Naruto. But even so, he wasn't so sure the current situation was a heck of a lot better.

"I don't know. We'll have to see when he wakes up. He should be unconscious for another day at least; the morphine should wear off by then. I have no idea when he'll wake up naturally though, it could be anytime." She threw him a 'look.' "He _did_ just morph into a child, after all. I don't even think the Kyuubi can help him recover straight away."

Whilst the two were talking, the nurses washed Naruto's body and stripped off his clothing. They replaced them with a crisp hospital robe; the sickly green clashed terribly with his tanned skin. Removing him from the steel table, they transferred him to a clean, comfy bed with white sheets; arranging the green blankets over him so he would be comfortable and warm. They couldn't help but notice how adorable he had gone through several emotions with this boy- fear and then respect- now they weren't sure whether to refer to him as a powerful ninja from their village, or a cute little boy they have to look after.

The six whiskers on his face used to terrify them; it was a sign of the dreaded Kyuubi. But now, they just added to the boy's cute, quirky appeal. They all felt the crippling guilt; they had treated the boy who saved the village like dirt beforehand, regardless of the kindness the rambunctious boy had shown others. Two of the nurses had even refused to go near him when he needed treatment. Shaking her head, one nurse ran her hand through Naruto's bright locks; his hair had grown by several inches. It resembled the Fourth's almost exactly; the only difference was it being a shade brighter.

The Sannin stripped herself of her bloody gloves and placed them in the bin. "His friends are waiting outside." She hesitated as she looked at the door; Kakashi was sharing the same emotion. He resisted the urge to rip out his hair.

"How are we supposed to tell them about this? Kami, _Especially _Sakura." He winced as he remembered the power that she packed from one punch. "She's going to kill me for not protecting him." Tsunade rolled her eyes.

"Well, that's _your _problem. Now, get the hell out while I finish up in here." She completely turned away from his gaze and turned her full attention to Naruto. His brain waves were normal and his immune system was completely brand new. Tsunade's first course of action was to fix him up with the annual inoculations. She wasn't going to take any risks with him anymore; her heart was still recovering from almost losing him this once.

Kakashi stepped over the pool of blood and walked past Naruto's bed to promptly exit through the door, but something made him stop. Looking the boy, his breath caught in his throat. _That hair…_ Visions of his Sensei, the fourth Hokage practically hurled themselves at him; along with the guilt of not being there for Naruto when he was a child. Naruto had been _alone_. It was one of his biggest failures, one of many. It was one he had hoped to amend when Naruto had joined his Genin team; but it was so damn _painful _to look at him for too long. Plus, him and Sasuke were so alike…it has just been easier to focus on the Uchiha. _Damn lot of good that did. _He liked to think that he had done okay by Naruto after Sasuke's departure, but there was the lingering feeling that he could have done more._ I_ _could still do more. _Forcing himself away from the tiny figure smothered in blankets, he left the room and strode down the hall. He itched to get his beloved Icha Icha from his pocket, but resisted the feeling of taking his usual demeanour; after all, he wasn't in a 'usual' situation.

Kakashi was only slightly surprised to see all of Naruto's friends gathered in the waiting room, even less so when he saw the state they were in. Sakura's hands were curled so tightly that her nails painfully cut into the palm of her hand. Her shoulders shook with sobs she dared not release, as if they would be an omen to the worst possible news she could imagine._ I don't think- I can't take this! What the hell's going on? That idiot better not be dead or-or I'll… _She couldn't stop the silent tears that burned down her face. Kohona was still in a state of emergency after the attack, she was exhausted, emotionally and physically. She could hardly deal with the news that her friend was in hospital on a normal day, but with everything going on, it was ten times worse.

The only one to notice Kakashi's presence was Shikamaru. He saw the frustration and fear unwillingly portrayed in the Nara's eyes and decided enough was enough. He coughed softly, more than a dozen heads snapped up to meet his gaze, steadying their selves for the worst. Some couldn't take the suspense; Ino and Konohamaru were already emitting loud sobs whilst Sakura and Hinata were doing their best the reign themselves in. The atmosphere of tension, depression and panic was all too apparent.

"Kakashi, Naruto, is h-he?" Sakura couldn't bear to finish her question. Kakashi started to sweat beneath his mask. _Well shit, this is going to be hard to explain._

"Well, he's not dead." Kakashi winced as a collective sigh of relief- and more than a few sobs- ran through the waiting room. "…But he has spontaneously transformed into a child." All eyes turned towards him. Several moments seemed to pass; most expressions were uncomprehending- some even started to get angry. What he making some sort of joke?

"I'm not joking." His eyes became piercingly serious; everyone seemed to shiver under his gaze. "It's some sort of forbidden Jutsu. We don't know the 'ins and outs', but he has the body of a …let's say, a four year old." _A tiny four year old. Well, he always was short. _Shikamaru, although elated his close friend was not dead, groaned.

"This is so _troublesome_. What about his mind set?" Kakashi shook his head.

"Don't bother me with any questions. I have don't have your answers." A sense of realisation crashed down on everyone else in the room. Naruto- their Naruto was a _kid_? "But, he's healthy. More than healthy in fact, he's practically brand new. Now if you excuse me, I have to go fill in a report…"

"_How could you let this happen_?" Sakura's voice was livid. Not only had Kakashi failed to protect Naruto from injury, the lasting effects were _serious_! Though, her anger wasn't all aimed at her former sensei, he was the unfortunate scapegoat. Kakashi was more than ready to deal with it, he felt heavy with guilt already. _"_A kid_? Are you kidding me?_" Her voice started to reach hysterics towards to end of her sentence. Kakashi braced himself for the impending punch and was almost disappointed to see five others restrain her. _Am I a masochist now? Hm._

He turned away without a word. He had to fill in this mission report. He shook his head, even with writing it down, it seemed ludicrous. _Well, it is Naruto. I guess anything can happen. Though I'm not quite sure how he's going to top this one._


	2. Chapter 2: Well, that went well

**Chapter Two-Well, that went well.**

**A/N:** I've realised a problem with my timeline- Tsunade is in a coma and only wakes up during the fourth Shinobi world war. This is a bit of a problem obviously. So, it's apparently a partial AU.

Set after the Invasion of pain arc. Due to the losses Akatsuki has recently had, Tobi has postponed any immediate actions. This story will follow its own timeline.

Also, I found this chapter hard to finish, just because there's like no action ah well!

I'm currently writing the third chapter anyway, it's a lot better, I promise you! Much more kiddy Naruto action!

Disclaimer: I don't even know why we gotta do these… of course I don't own Naruto! I don't have that sorta imagination- plus I'd be rich and off somewhere on a permanent holiday and not sitting at home, listening to the rain whilst typing. Yay.

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The Hokage's temporary office was devoid of life, bar the drunken Sannin. Tsunade groaned, it was already evening and piles of paperwork lay unfinished. The pages just seemed to blur together whilst her mind was elsewhere, namely, a blond haired boy- emphasis on the _boy_. It had been a two full days since Naruto had been …incapacitated and she had a feeling it wouldn't be long until he woke. That was a problem within itself, how the hell do you explain to someone that they're biologically four years old? She couldn't conjure a single scenario that didn't end with Naruto screaming in horror and promptly passing out. That was, if he even still had his memories intact. He didn't _seem_ to have any brain damage, but only time could tell. Deep in thought, she swirled the glass of sake in her hand, mesmerised by the circular movements. She jolted and sake spilled over the sides, product of an urgent knocking on her door. Resisting the urge to curse, she quickly dabbed the droplets of sake with her sleeve.

"What is it?" She was feeling in no way polite towards the person who interrupted her brooding. A young, brown haired Chunin jerked the door open and stumbled in. He was breathing heavily and his nose scrunched up in worry, making his scar crinkle. _Oh, fantastic, Iruka._

"Yes, Iruka? Did you need something?" At her less that pleasant tone, Iruka manage to compose himself.

"Hokage-sama, my apologies." He bowed politely. "Naruto…is it true? What the villagers are saying?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow. The villagers were talking about Naruto?

"That depends. What are the villagers saying?"

"Ah-well, I know it sounds crazy, but, he hasn't turned into a boy…has he?" Iruka would have usually scoffed at something so ridiculous, but with the amount of villagers repeating the same rumour, he started to have doubts. Tsunade swore loudly and slammed her fist on the table, making the more timid ninja jump. Iruka's eyes widened with shock- her reaction could only mean one thing; the rumours were true.

"Shit! How the hell do they know?" Her question was aimed at no one in particular, she already knew the answer. With her concentration spanning her own slow recovery and Naruto's new…situation, she had completely forget to make the Nurses swear to silence. This was bad, especially for Naruto. It would be completely humiliating for him.

"But- I mean, how? A type of Jutsu that could do something like that…it's nuts! I mean, you use a henge, right?" Iruka was rambling by now, somewhat unaware that he was talking to the Hokage, someone he always addresses with a lavish amount of respect. Tsunade's eyebrow twitched at the reference to her real age.

"The 'how' is far too complicated to explain, but yes, it's true. Now Iruka, I…" She was interrupted by another figure at the door, a frantic Shizune.

"Tsunade-sama, you should be down at the hospital- Naruto's waking up!" It didn't take a second for the sentence to sink in before the three nin's sprung into action, aiming straight for the new hospital.

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Kakashi hadn't had much sleep, thus the Nurses left him to his own devices; his temper seeming to get shorter with every minute his was awake. Between worrying about his student and actually visiting his student, he seldom had enough time for much else. His stomach was disagreeing completely with his course of actions and wasn't afraid to tell him, he'd been unable to stop the growling for around an hour. He didn't, however, want to leave Naruto's side to grab some dinner. It was about time Naruto's should wake up, and he'd be damned if he let the boy wake up alone. His friends had visited, of course, but had gone home when the evening arrived and visiting hours were technically over. They had been reluctant to leave and he felt slightly guilty he was the only one allowed to stay.

He sighed with exasperation, reviewing the rookie's reactions to Naruto's younger form. He was going to have his work cut out for him when he woke up. Sakura was the worst; she took one look at the boy and ran out of the room in tears. Kakashi just hoped she dealt with her emotions before Naruto saw her; he had the feeling the blonde wouldn't deal well with being unaccepted by his team mate. He was happy that his other friends were slightly more accepting, most still had mix emotions or, like Ino, completely gushed about how 'adorable' he was. He smirked under his mask. If Naruto still had his sixteen year-old mind, he was sure the blonde wouldn't mind the attention.

Kakashi snapped his perverted book shut when he heard a pained groan. He immediately rushed to the boy's side whilst trying to maintain his lax persona; anything else would bring unnecessary panic. Three figures burst through the door; he didn't have to spare a gaze to know their identities. Whilst Tsunade immediately bolted to the semi-conscious Naruto, Iruka hesitantly stumbled in. He stifled a gasp when the he saw the tiny body. _He would barely reach my thigh…oh god. _Forcing his hands to stop shaking, he calmed down instantly; a skill he had acquired from his many years as a teacher. They all waited with bated breath as Naruto's eyes flickered.

_Where…am I?_

A wave of nausea hit Naruto with the force of a raging Tsunami. He gagged painfully and struggled to lift his arm to cover his mouth. His eyes snapped eyed open, with a burning panic he realised he could hardly move a single muscle.

"Nnngh!" He tried to cry out for help but his throat was far too dry too form words. He jolted again as he registered presences in the room; four imposing adults leaned over him. A hand reached out and Naruto instinctively flinched away. The terrified boy shuffled as far away from them as the bed would let them. He screwed his eyes shut and vigorously shook his head. He couldn't get rid of the feeling that he _knew_ these people, that he was completely _safe_. Of course the curious feelings combined with the missing knowledge just managed to scare him more.

"Naruto! Naruto, listen to me, you're safe- nothing can hurt you! Just-just calm the heck down!" He recognised to brown haired man that had suddenly appeared at his side. He narrowed his eyes in concentration. _Brown hair…that scar…that jacket…_

"Iruka-sensei?" He choked out. Iruka winced at the fearful tone.

"Yeah, it's me." Iruka tried to smile comfortingly, but he faltered. _How much does he remember?_

"Ah, sorry." Naruto smiled sheepishly and re-adjusted himself on the bed. His terror seemed to disappear as soon as he saw the brotherly affection in Iruka's other three adults were tense; they were too questioning Naruto's mental state. Flashes of images and emotions made Naruto's head throb.

Tsunade was scared to ask the question on the tip of her tongue. The fear that the boy who resembled her dead brother- now even more so- didn't recognise her was crippling. It almost compared to her past fear of blood. _Well, I got over that; I can sure as hell get over this._

"Naruto, do you recognise me?" The small blonde redirected his attention to the pretty woman standing at the bottom of his bed. Instinctively, he reached up with shaky hands to touch his necklace. More flashes ran through his mind until he answered the woman with a small nod. _Baa-chan. _He gave the woman a shy smile and she sighed in relief.

"I think I know you all. It's just…" He trailed off, trying to find the right way to explain the sensation. "Flashy!" He exclaimed wildly with his arms, evoking an affectionate smile from the adults.

Tsunade ushered Iruka away from Naruto's side so she could check his responses.

"Naruto, hold your eyes open for me." She dug a flashlight from her pocket and shone it in the boy's eyes. He immediately screwed them shut.

"Don't wanna!" He protested. _That light hurts! _Tsunade just sighed and resigned herself to check him later.

"Alright. So what did you mean by 'flashy'?" Her lips unconsciously curled into a smile once again when the gaki's face scrunched up adorably. She couldn't get over how big and blue his eyes were._ If only Minato could see this._

"Well…I dunno!~" He huffed in frustration. He _knew_ every adult in this room was important to him in different ways- maybe the brown haired woman wasn't as important. He didn't harbour the strong emotions towards her as the others. Out of all the blurred memories, there was one that stood out vividly. The sight of one onyx eye. He searched for the owner and let out a sigh of relief when he saw his sensei. He stood stoically at the end of his bed, observing. Kakashi would have actively questioned Naruto as well, but he was far too tired, therefore he let the others take over.

"You're baa-chan! You're Iruka-sensei! You're Shizune nee-chan! And you're _Kakashi-sensei_!" He exclaimed proudly, grinning wildly. His face scrunched up again however; his own voice seemed foreign to him. He lifted his hand in front of his face, his limbs now mobile. He started down in confusion at the tiny palm.

"Heh! That's weird! I could've sworn I was bigger!" He peered up at Tsunade expectantly, his question was implied. Tsunade just looked at the other adult's for help. She was at a loss of what to say.

"_**Hey, brat."**_

Naruto looked around the room in confusion, searching for the adult was had emitted the husky, malicious tone. No one had spoken, _but he'd heard a voice_! He gasped as he was plunged into the blackness of his own inner mind, the shouts of the adult's too far out of his reach. He opened his eyes once more and faced a giant, fox-like creature. He grinned- a cynical grin that made the boy feel quite uncomfortable; especially since he hadn't forgotten for a second who this creature was.

"Kyuubi." He scratched the back of his head, unsure of what to say."Uh…hello?"

The fox just tutted at the unintelligent greeting. The awkward silence between the two was filled only by the drips and rippling of the water below Naruto's feet. Finally, the fox spoke.

"_**You just can't keep yourself out of trouble; can you, you insolent brat?"**_ The fox chuckled menacingly once more, Naruto shivered from the sound of it. _**"Little being the operative word it seems. This is quite inconvenient for me too, you know."**_

Naruto tilted his head to the side, incomprehensively. "I don't get it." He stated rather bluntly. The fox intimidated him, but he also felt like he had some sort of power over it. He wasn't nearly as terrified as he had been when he first woke up. Unnerved, but not terrified.

"_**Come here, Naruto."**_

Naruto stood still for several moments, twiddling his thumbs nervously. _Should I?_ He gulped and timidly moved his little legs forwards. He stood directly in front of the gates. The Kyuubi shook his head at his most recent jailer. The boy was more trouble than he was worth. Still, he was far more tolerable than the other two had been, so he decided to cut the boy some slack. _**He needs his memories. **_Kyuubi moved too quickly for the young boy to comprehend, his huge hand shot through the gates and gripped the boy. He didn't hesitate and started to transfer the memories immediately. _**Identities…events…fighting ability… but, how should I handle his mentality? **_Kurama looked at the young boy engulfed by his hand. He knew instantly that the Jutsu wasn't temporary. The boy really was, biologically, four years old. It would be more than a hindrance for him to regain his sixteen year old consciousness. _**I'll have to choose selectively. **_Finally, after five minutes of transferring memories, Kurama abruptly let Naruto drop to the floor.

"**Be grateful, Brat, That used up a lot of chakra."**

Before he could answer, Naruto was pulled back to consciousness by the shaking of his shoulder.

"Naruto?" Tsunade was frantic. Naruto just stopped responding and his eyes had glazed over, unseeingly starting at the wall. _What happened? Is this a usual occurrence?_ _Does he have brain damage?_

"Ugh, I feel sick!" Another wave of nausea ran through Naruto.

"Naruto, what happened?"

"Eh? Oh! Don't worry about that, the big fox just wanted to talk." He gave her an ear-splitting grin, only to falter when she just seemed more concerned.

"He did, did he?" Naruto didn't miss the silent conversation between Tsunade and Kakashi. He tilted his head to the side and frowned. He'd seen the same look many times, usually coming from the villagers, well, before Pein. He hadn't expected the same from two of his precious people. He huffed, the sound made Tsunade turn her attention back towards him.

"He didn't do anything. Jus' wanted to see why I'm all small." He lied. The Kyuubi had fixed the gaps in his memories, but he wasn't about to tell them that. He paused. _Why am I small? _ "Wait, how old do I look?"

The adults became increasingly uncomfortable. He was figuring it out. Tsunade decided to break the news; she was, after all, the Hokage.

"Naruto, you were attacked."

"Oh, I was?" He cocked his head to the side. He didn't _remember_ being attacked.

"I'm just going to be blunt here. You have the body of a four year old child." Naruto blinked. Then he started giggling.

"Don't be silly, baa-chan! I'm not four!" The giggling stopped when he realised none of the adults seemed to share his amusement. He turned to the person he trusted the most, his sensei. "Kakashi-sensei? I'm not four?" Wordlessly, Kakashi gathered the small mirror from the corner of the room. He was hoping Naruto wouldn't turn to him, the guilt was bubbling up in him with every passing second.

"Naruto, I want you to take a deep breath and look in the mirror." Naruto brow frowned. He'd assumed the adults were playing a joke on him. One he looked in the mirror, he decided if it was a joke, it was very mean. His face was small and round, his nose was like a button. His eyes, however, were much, much larger than they were before. All around, he was four. Unable to handle the situation, Naruto promptly passed out. After a long silence, Kakashi was the first to speak.

"Well, I personally think that went well."

"Well, at least he didn't cry." Iruka offered.

"Oh, believe me, the crying will come later. Naruto's always been very emotional, imagine that tenfold." Kakashi frowned; he couldn't imagine why Naruto would be more emotional.

"Wait, just because he looks four, doesn't mean he _is_ four? If he has most, or at least, some of his memories, surely he would keep his mentality?"

"I'd normally agree, however, it's not just his body reversibly aging. His mind did too. It's as developed as a normal child's brain, which means it hasn't developed very much. There's also the lack a hormones, I could go on. So yes, he had the mind of a child."

"Well, with Naruto, that means he'll act around two." Kakashi added. Tsunade gave him a disapproving glare, though silently agreeing that the boy was, at time, an idiot- a lovable idiot, but still an idiot.

"As I was saying, Naruto will act like a four year old, he'll speak like a four year old, and he'll even have the co-ordination of a four year old."

"So what you're saying is…he's four?"

"Oh my! Well done Kakashi!" Tsunade exclaimed, the sarcasm evident. "Anyway, he's well enough to be discharged soon. There's nothing wrong health wise, except the obvious. We'll have to keep an eye on his mentality though."

"Tsunade-sama, about earlier, do you think the Kyuubi influenced him?" Shizune finally spoke up. She was much more wary of the entity inside Naruto than the others. Tsunade just rolled her eyes.

"Did he _seem_ more demonic to you?"

"Well, no, but I still think we should watch him. He's far more fragile now." Tsunade sighed and looked out the window, considering her options. She couldn't let Naruto go back to his make-shift apartment, it was far too dangerous.

"All right. For all intents and purposes, Naruto should have a guardian." Tsunade didn't give the adults a chance to answer. "Kakashi?" She asked expectantly. He blinked.

"Eh? Why me? Iruka's more motherly." The brunette made a noise of disagreement.

"I only have one room in my apartment. I'm not having Naruto sleep on the couch- and we know for a fact you have two rooms, Kakashi." The silver-haired Jounin felt the four oppressive glares and sighed.

"All right, all right, I was going to do it anyway." He scratched his head. _Well, this is going to be weird. _He wasn't exactly the most responsible person in the world. He hoped he wouldn't mess this up. Tsunade smirked.

"Good."


	3. Chapter 3: Broken glass

**Papa Kakashi!**

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A/N: Please be reminded that Naruto's mind has effectively reversed to his mentality when he was a kid. And his childhood was crappy. Yeah. He's gonna need a lot of comfort- queue Kakashi! Also, kids cry when they injure themselves, all the dang time, it's like an automatic reaction. In my opinion, four year old Narut would be no exception.

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**Chapter three- Broken glass**

Kakashi leant against the door as he watched Naruto put on his little boots. He smiled, it was winter so they had get the boy warm clothes. Somehow, the sight of Naruto wearing tiny fleece-lined booties was endearing. Naruto, once he finished attempting to tie his laces, jumped up and flashed his new guardian a blinding grin. He'd spent two days in the hospital, and was more than ready to be discharged. Especially since he was a kid now, he found it hard to stay still. His fidgety nature was bad enough when he was sixteen.

"I'm ready!" The blonde was excited, you could tell that much from the pitch of his sweet voice. He ran towards Kakashi and ended up tripping on one of his laces. Kakashi rolled his eyes and caught the boy.

"Maa, how did you manage that?" He stared incredulously at the mangled shoe laces. He sighed at Naruto's sheepish expression and re-did the shoelaces.

"Sorry." Naruto was smiling again with his big blue eyes. Kakashi ruffled his blonde locks.

"It's alright. Remind me to teach you when we can home." Naruto smiled brightened even more. When he was younger, in the orphanage, he'd always dreamt of someone coming in and taking him home. To him, this was like one big dream come true.

"Okay!" Naruto followed Kakashi out of the hospital. It was weird. Before the accident he'd gotten looks of appreciation and respect, but the adoring looks now were much different. He didn't understand why everyone was smiling at him like he was a puppy. Kakashi noticed however, he knew how adorable young Naruto was, and somehow it made him feel a bit proud.

Naruto resisted the urge to hold Kakashi's hand. Although he'd always wanted to hold hands with someone when he was younger, he had to remind himself that this was Kakashi, not his father, and it would just be awkward. After they started to walk down the cold, wet street, Naruto was finding it increasingly hard to keep up. His little legs were working double time trying to keep up with Kakashi's lengthy strides. He now felt quite hot through his puffy orange winter jacket and his breath came out as mist, not that you could see it through the dark blue of the evening light. Kakashi didn't notice the boy's struggle until he felt a little body stumble into his leg.

"Oops! Sorry!" Kakashi frowned at the apologetic boy. The little blonde was out of breath. He tried making sure he stepped slower and shorter, but he was still far too fast for the tot. He decided to save Naruto from extra embarrassment.

"Alright Naruto, come here." The blonde stared up at his tall sensei confusedly. He gasped in delight as he was picked up and placed on Kakashi's shoulders, his little hands gripping the Jounin's head.

"Woah, sensei! It's high up here!" Kakashi couldn't resist a chuckle at the boy's awed tone. _Wow, kids are so simple. Or maybe that's just Naruto._

"Alright Naruto, how would you like some Ramen before we go home?" From the boy's amazed gasp, you could've sworn he'd bought the boy a puppy. Naruto didn't miss the fact Kakashi had said 'home' either.

"Yeah! Ichiraku ramen!" He punched the air excitably, which made quite a few ladies milling around giggle, the blonde was still oblivious however; it was most likely the result of being hated and lonely in his first childhood. He just couldn't imagine anyone thinking him as cute. In fact, it never even crossed his mind.

As soon as the neared Ichiraku ramen, Kakashi set him on his feet. Naruto began to feel a little regretful for being so excited earlier. After all, one of his deepest complexes was other people's view on him; he couldn't help but feel a little nervous as he walked into the restaurant. _Are they gonna' laugh at me? No, I'm sure Teuchi wouldn't do that. _Kakashi noticed the boy fiddling with his finger nervously and patted him on the head. He was surprising himself with all these gestures.

"Naruto?" The boy's blue eyes widened and he suddenly felt the urge to hide behind Kakashi's leg. He pushed the feeling down however and flashed Ayame a bright smile. "Hi, Ayame nee-chan!" He climbed onto the stool, with great difficulty. _Okay, being small, not so fun!_

Teuchi and Ayame were speechless. In fact, Kakashi would've sword they'd gone into shock. He guessed they didn't get the memo that the rumours were actually true. _Well, this might be awkward._

"Wow. Well, hi there Naruto!" Teuchi rubbed his neck and laughed awkwardly. He was coping pretty well for the shock of a lifetime. Much better than Naruto, the blonde had spent an hour intermittently bawling his eyes out. Then again, he wasn't the one who miraculously turned into a four year old. "Well, what can I get ya'?" Whilst Kakashi asked for soy, Naruto seemed to contemplate this for a moment.

"Miso, please!" Teuchi's eyes crinkled at young Naruto. He shrugged. _Well, you gotta' admit, he's a cutie. _He turned towards his daughter to ask her to prepare the noodles and sweat dropped. There was hearts in her eyes. Really, he could see them.

"Naru-chan!" The blonde visibly flinched at the nickname and Kakashi resisted a chuckle. Then the young boy shrugged. _Eh, better then demon, I guess._ "Eat as many bowls as you like, it's on the house!" Teuchi groaned at his daughter. Sure, Naruto was now probably the cutest kid he'd ever seen, but _still_, there were going to go_ bankrupt_. Kakashi was mentally rejoicing, he'd been worrying about the state of his wallet. He wasn't about to abuse the allowance Tsunade had given him, that was for necessities.

The three adults watched in morbid fascination as the tiny four year old somehow managed to plough his way through three bowls. Sure, on a normal day he could eat anything from six to eight, but that was when he was an averagely built teen. As a kid, Naruto was always small. Teuchi just shook his head. The blonde just never ceased to amaze.

"Where does it all go?" He conspicuously whispered to his daughter. She just giggled; it seems Naruto can still be cute when he's being a glutton.

"Woah, that was great! Thanks Teuchi!" The old man smiled warmly at the boy's bright grin. _Phew, thank kami it was only three bowls! _Naruto climbed off his stool and waved, Kakashi went to follow him.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Ayame glared at the jounin, her arms crossed her chest disapprovingly. He raised an eyebrow.

"Maa, I thought this was on the house?" He smiled at the ramen girl and Teuchi groaned. Hearts appeared in her eyes once more. It seems like Naruto and Kakashi were quite the deadly pair.

"Uh, of course! Just kidding!" She chuckled awkwardly and opened her eyes to find herself talking to an empty space. "Hey!"

As the neared Kakashi's apartment, the pair's conversation dwindled as Naruto's thoughts ran wild. He didn't want to bother Kakashi with his worries, but he needed someone to confide in.

"Uh, sensei?" Kakashi looked down at the boy and frowned. He was twiddling with his fingers in a rather Hyuuga-like fashion. It didn't look right on the normally bright, brash boy.

"Hm? What is it?" Naruto peered up at his sensei through his blonde bangs, his big eyes held slivers of anxiety.

"What about my friends?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"What about them?" Naruto bit his lip and blushed.

"Well, I mean, I'm small now. It's going to be weird, isn't it?" Kakashi hesitated, not knowing whether to lie or be honest. _Don't tell him about Sakura. _

"I'm sure it'll be fine. They were all very relieved you were okay." Naruto looked happier at this.

"They were? Were they worried?" He asked eagerly, Kakashi nodded.

"Yes, very. They had to be forced to leave." Naruto whooped and giggled. He felt immensely happy. Sure, he felt bad for worrying them, but the fact they cared a lot about his well-fare made him feel all warm and tingly.

When they eventually reached their new home, Naruto couldn't help but stare in awe. When Pein had attacked Kohona, both his and Kakashi's apartments were completely destroyed. Whilst Naruto moved into another old apartment- the only one he could afford- it seems Kakashi took residence in one of the new buildings. It was so attractive and the quality was so high, he couldn't help but draw comparisons to his dream home. He whirled around to stare at Kakashi in bewilderment. _Surely this isn't it? _He followed Kakashi up the stair case, his hands trailing over the expensive wood.

"Uh, sensei?" He called out timidly. He felt so out of place.

"Hm?" Kakashi peered back a he boy. _What could possibly be wrong now?_

"Uh, nothing, never mind!" He scratched the back of his head and grinned awkwardly. He didn't want to sound lame if this really was the place. The chances this _was_ the place steadily increased as they reached the top floor; especially when Kakashi inserted his keys into a door and unlocked it. Either his sensei was robbing someone, and had pick pocketed their keys, or he really did live here. He blinked in surprise. _I never knew sensei was rich!_

When Kakashi opened to door to his apartment, Naruto couldn't help but groan. Considering this was the guy who showed up three hours late to every meeting, he was unnaturally neat. Unnaturally as in, the books in his shelf were alphabetically ordered...unless they were Icha Icha; in that case, they had their own shelf. He shivered, disturbing. But still, the place was _impressive!_

"Woah, sensei! I never knew you had such a nice place!" Naruto discarded his new coat and shoes at the door and ran into the apartment. Kakashi would never show it openly, but he was pretty proud of his new apartment, it was nice. He was also pretty glad Naruto liked it, because under no circumstances was he taking Naruto to _that _house_. _He put his and Naruto's coat on the rack and followed the boy in.

"Naruto? Come here, your room is this way." The blonde boy blinked and nodded. It was strange, having all the rooms separated to doors. He'd only had one room in his whole life.

Naruto felt a rush of gratitude towards his sensei. The room was really nice and clean, with a big comfy bed. It was the view out of the window, however, that made him smile the most; the Hokage Mountain was practically faced purposely towards the apartment. He ran up to the window and placed his small hand of the cool glass.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Kakashi smiled at Naruto's excitement. He knew the kid would love this room. The blonde grinned cheekily. "My face is gonna' be up there soon!"

"I'm sure it is." _Maybe not as soon as I thought, but you'll definitely get there, Naruto. _His faith in his student was solid. He _would _become Hokage; there was just the little problem of when, especially now Kohona's hero was a child.

Kakashi yawned and realized he could barely keep his eyes open. "Well, alright, you get yourself settled in. There's food in the kitchen if you need it." He walked out the room, sparing the boy a last glance before he went to take a nap. It was strange, but he felt... comforted by the fact his student was living with him. He'd been living by himself for so long; he'd forgotten the feeling of companionship. He felt the torrent of depression ready the crash and forcibly pushed it down. He didn't go a day without thinking about his father. Although he knew it wasn't necessarily his fault, he father, in his opinion, took the coward's way out. _And left me alone. _Kakashi hadn't taken a step in his former house since. Shaking away his thought, he grabbed the Icha Icha book Naruto gave him as a present and read only a chapter before falling asleep.

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_Two hours later_

"Okay, this was cool at first, but now I'm bored!" Naruto sat on his new bed, cross legged and pouting. It was pitch dark out, so he had resorted to reading scrolls in the dim light of his lamp. Kakashi had been asleep for two hours, and Naruto was in no way or form tired. He'd been sleeping for almost four days straight; he couldn't possible _have_ any more energy. He'd even circled his room in his boredom, only to find it severely empty. He decided to rectify that when they went shopping tomorrow. A furious blush crossed his face when he realized he really, _really_ wanted a stuffed animal. And toys. And sweets. He groaned and shook his head. "Damn, what's _wrong_ with me?" He scowled. It looked out of place on the boy's innocent features. _Okay, I get it; I'm a kid now, but seriously, a teddy? _His scowl grew when an amused chuckle reverberated through his consciousness. Kurama. "Che! Stupid fox! This ain't funny!" There was no reply. It just made him angrier.

Not being able to take his boredom any longer, Naruto cautiously opened the door to the main room. He tip-toed across to the kitchen and froze when he heard a light snoring. He grinned to himself when he saw Kakashi sprawled across the sofa, his book balanced delicately on his face. His eyes trailed down to his mask and he smirked. _Time for that later!_ His throat was dry and he found it hard to swallow, he recognised the feeling to be thirst. Realizing that he really badly needed a drink, Naruto padded his way to the kitchen and shut the door behind him. "Okay, cups, cups." Looking through the cupboards as quietly as he could, Naruto frowned. He couldn't see any cups. He bit his lip. _Should I ask Kakashi? _He shook his head at his own question. A part of him, a part which still believed all his bonds hung precariously in the balance, wanted to make sure he was as little of a nuisance as possible. As he was about to give up, he looked towards to top shelf. The blonde mentally cheered. _Cups! _On the top shelf, far out of his reach, was five glass cups.

Kakashi was roughly pulled back into consciousness as the sound of a crash and broken glass. He flew into a wild panic. He ran to the boy's room, only to find it empty. He immediately thought the worst, his chakra fluctuated wildly,

"Naruto? _Naruto?_" His breath caught in his throat when he heard sniffling emanating from the kitchen. He couldn't move fast enough, he ripped the door open, tearing the top hinge. Kakashi could hear his heart beating wildly in his chest. In the dark room, in a crumpled heap, lay Naruto. He sighed in relief as the formerly unmoving form let out a stifled sob and sat up. Then he got angry. "What the _hell _are you doing?"He was angry the boy made him worry so intensely. Sure, he was constantly worried about his students, especially Naruto, but he'd been _terrified_ Naruto had been kidnapped or killed. The emotion was so strong; he didn't even access the situation or feel for chakra before he flew into a panic. It was _weird. _

Naruto's eyes stared at the floor in front of him, unseeing. He couldn't stop the torrent of painful sobs and the violent shaking. He ignored the pain from the gash in his forehead that made him cry with shock in the first place, Kakashi was angry with him, and that was so much worse. The irrational fear that Kakashi was going to kick him out had always been in his mind since the situation was announced. It seemed inevitable to him. He'd been kicked out of the orphanage, three of his former apartments, hell, even Iruka had never once asked Naruto if he'd like to live with him. It wasn't like Naruto expected it, but it had been one of his most prominent daydreams, especially when Iruka was his only precious person. Now the person he practically idolised was angry with him for being so damn clumsy, and he couldn't do anything but curl up on the floor and pathetically sob.

"Naruto?" Kakashi gaped wide-eyed at the sobbing boy before him. He almost hit himself for sounding so intimidating. Somehow, he knew the boy was already an emotional wreck; of course, he just put it down to the recent transformation. The origin of Naruto's insecurities was unknown to him. Unsure on how to handle the boy, he flicked the light switch on. He felt slightly sick at the sight; a copious amount of blood was dripping from Naruto's head, his little hand was clutching the wound. "Oh boy." He didn't know what else to say. He quickly grabbed a medical pack from the top drawer and scooped up the boy from the floor. He sat him down in his lap and pressed a cloth to the wound, trying to stop the blood flow. "What were you trying to do?"

Naruto sniffled. He was surprised however, Kakashi didn't seem as mad. Or he was really mad and just wasn't showing it. He wasn't sure which one he preferred.

"I fell." He stated, Kakashi rolled his eyes at the obviousness of it. He felt around for the disinfectant and smiled slightly when he found it.

"Yes, but how?" Naruto averted his eyes at the question. It was so stupid; a ninja like him shouldn't fall so easily. But then, he was used to his former body, he overcompensated the distance and ended up falling from the counter.

"Um... I tried reaching the cups, but I'm too short. So I climbed up on the counter and tried to reach 'em, but I got wobbly and I fell." He sobbed when he looked at the broken cups. "I broke em! I'm so, so sorry!" Kakashi frowned at how profusely the boy was apologizing. They were just cups; it wasn't that big of a deal.

"It's alright Naruto." The boy sniffled miserably.

"It is?" Kakashi nodded and Naruto let out a small smile, still unsure.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" He dabbed the alcohol on Naruto's wound and the boy yelped.

"I didn't wanna bother you." He mumbled. "'m really sorry." Kakashi sighed. He didn't understand why Naruto was acting to timidly, it was so unlike him. Did he do something? When Kakashi didn't answer, Naruto grew anxious. He started to cry again and rubbed the tears away with the back of his hand, unwittingly smearing blood across his face.

"Are you gonna' kick me out?" Kakashi froze and stared at the boy, horrified. "'cause that's alright, I dun' mind." By the tone of his voice, it was quite obvious he _did _mind.

"Eh? Why on earth would I kick you out?" Kakashi was beyond confused. He didn't understand why Naruto was so upset, not at all.

"Because I broke your cups!" Naruto practically screamed and pushed Kakashi's hand away. In instinct, Kakashi gripped the boy's wrist and pulled his close. He was hugging him.

"Naruto, I don't care about the cups. Next time you need something, you ask me okay?" Dumbfounded, the boy managed a nod. "As for kicking you out, don't be ridiculous, you're not going anywhere." Naruto's heart was beating wildly. He could scarcely believe his ears. He snuggled into Kakashi's hug and squeezed him back.

"Okay! Thank you ''kashi!" Kakashi froze at the new nickname but then smiled fondly. He put the blood soaked rag down and smoothed down the boy's hair. He didn't know why Naruto had been so upset, but he'd find out. He couldn't fathom why Naruto would think he'd kick him out for _hurting_ himself. If anything, it was Kakashi's fault for leaving him unsupervised for hours, especially not even leaving the cups in a accessible place. He hadn't even shown his around properly, he'd just assumed the blonde would be alright and left him. _Damn!_ He felt ridiculously stupid, not even a day and he'd managed to wound the boy and reduce him to tears. He also realized that it wouldn't be like housing a teenager. He was effectively playing the part of a parent. And he was messing up, badly. He felt _terrible_. He was also quite disturbed and Naruto's change in personality. He was still Naruto, still the bright sun he knew, but he was also vulnerable, skittish, apologetic. And he was sad. Hugging the boy tighter, he realized he didn't want the boy to be sad. Unused to these kinds of protective feelings, he shrugged._ I'll figure it out later._


	4. Chapter 4: Is this for me?

**Papa Kakashi!**

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**A/N: **Hinata's not being pedo-ey, it's just kinda hard getting over the love of your life because he's miraculously turned into a child. God, that sounds strange. And yes, fox themed stuff, how cliché. I don't even care, foxes are cute (been my fave animal since I was five), Naruto is cute, Naruto with fox is adorable and squeal worthy. So blergh ;)

Also, I'm **so sorry** this chapter is so short! But i have a huge exam Monday and I've been preparing! But don;t worry, just two more exams left and I have upload wayyyy more! Maybe even tri-weekly! And the chapter will be a lot longer! Believe it!;)

**And, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL MY REVIEWERS! I was **_**not **_**expecting so many at all! Seriously, 26 reviews? I was hardly expecting anything above ten! Thank you, thank you!**

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**PS: **I've started a new time travel fic, if anyone's into that. It's called 'Yellow Thread'. I'll just post the summary^^ (shamelessly advertising...)

**Time Travel. It seems death really likes screwing people over. Why have Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata and Shikamaru returned to their six year old selves? Why are they in Iwa? Why hasn't the third shinobi war ended? What the hell is going on? Brotherly!SasuNaru, NaruHina**.

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**Warning: **Overuse to the words 'cute' and adorable'.

**Disclaimer: **C'mon, seriously?

**Enjoy!**

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**Chapter Four- Is this for me?**

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Kakashi groaned as his opened his bleary eyes. A yellow blur was creating an earthquake. _Ugh, I feel like death. _

"'Kashi! Wake up, wake up! It's morning already!" Kakashi looked outside; it was a fairly pleasant day. The sky was a frosty blue with wispy clouds; by the sight he knew it was going to be cold. Looking at him alarm clock, he refrained from killing the yellow blur. It was already ten in the morning, if Naruto had woke him up any sooner; he might have been yellow mush. He blinked. Kakashi was surprised; he usually woke up at five on the dot, results on an ANBU regime. As he didn't answer the blonde, his jumping seemed to get more enthusiastic.

"Maa, aren't you excitable in the morning? Stop that before you break the bed." This stopped Naruto immediately. After breaking his sensei's cups, he certainly didn't feel like breading anything else. Kakashi smiled slightly as Naruto's stomach rumbled loudly. "You hungry?"

"Yup!" The blonde grinned brightly; Kakashi said he was going to make breakfast. He hoped he was a good cook.

Unfortunately, due to years of being a bachelor, Kakashi was _not _a good cook. After burning the eggs twice, the jounin finally gave in and made Naruto some toast. Even that was a bit crispy.

"How have you even lived this long?" Naruto mumbled over his toast, though he could hardly hear himself over the deafening crunches. Kakashi shrugged but mentally agreed. Even his toast was terrible. "Geez, next time _I'm_ cooking!"

"Nani? You are not cooking!" Kakashi shouted. Images of burns and severed fingers came to mind and he shuddered. Naruto was _not_ using his kitchen.

"Ehh? Why not? I'm a good cook!" The blonde protested, Kakashi sighed.

"Naruto, cup ramen doesn't count." The blonde sniffed, he was offended.

"I'll have you know I'm a great cook. 'm a natural."

"Naruto, I'm not letting a minor use my kitchen." Naruto opened his mouth to protest but Kakashi shut him up with a stern look. As the jounin got up to rinse his plate, he heard the blonde curse under his breath. This, of course, earned him a thwack on his head.

"H-hey!" Naruto's eyes became teary. It hadn't hurt at all; it was more of the shock of the gesture.

"No swearing." The parental scolding came as a surprise to Naruto.

"Che! I'f I can't swear, you can't read porn!" Kakashi's eyes widened in horror.

"It's _not_ porn, it's fantastic literature..." Naruto cut him off.

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard it all before." He finished his gross toast. "Ol' pervert." Kakashi sighed. It seemed Naruto's four year old behaviour and his teenage behaviour crossed over at times. This was going to be difficult.

"So, what's the plan for today?" Naruto asked whilst putting his plate in the sink. It irked him that his head barely reached the top of the counter.

"We're going shopping." This piece of information made the blonde groan. He _hated_ shopping. "Maa, you're excited."

"Shut up! I hate shopping." Naruto pouted, the copy-nin couldn't help but feel little butterflies in his chest. _So cute._ "What do we need, 'Kashi?" The Jounin also smiled at that. He liked his new nickname. It was, again, cute.

"We need clothes, groceries, you know, the essentials." He paused. "I refuse you buy you another orange jumpsuit." Another pause. "Or anything orange at all."

"_Nani?_ Why not? Orange is practically my theme colour!" The blonde exclaimed in indignation. _What's wrong with orange? _The colour, quite frankly, made Kakashi shiver in disgust.

"It's a hideous colour, not to mention impractical. Pick a new favourite." He tried ignored the blonde's protests as he walked to his room, but it was quite impossible.

"No way! I want compromise!" The blonde pouted cutely. It didn't take long for Kakashi to give in.

"Your room. It can be...orange." He grudgingly offered. _I'm destroying my apartment..._

"Yeah! Thanks ' Kashi!"

"No problem. Get changed, _Naru-chan_, we leave in fifteen."

"Hey! _Don't call me that_!" Kakashi chuckled at the blonde's angry shout. It was fun to tease him.

They left thirty minutes later, because as always, Kakashi was late. Naruto swore the man spent as much time in the bathroom as a girl. He glanced at the copy-nin's hair and chuckled to himself. _Such a girl. Probably spends hours styling it._

"Err, okay...we should probably get started with clothes." Kakashi fumbled with the list as they walked down the busy street. "So, where should we start? Underwear?"

"'Kashi! Don't say underwear so loud! It's embarrassing." The Jounin blinked. Did Naruto realise he just contradicted himself by shouting it even louder?

"Oh, don't be such a baby _Naru-chan_, everyone needs underwear." The third use of the word _underwear_, and the new dreaded title made Naruto stomp away from his guardian, grumbling under his breath. Kakashi grinned under his mask; the teenage attitude displayed by the four year old was too cute.

Naruto stopped and blinked when he saw the sight of a familiar girl twiddling her fingers. He grinned and ran up to her, enveloping her legs in a hug; he really was quite tiny.

"Hina-chan!" The Hyuuga blushed furiously. _Since when did Naruto-kun start calling me that_? She thankfully didn't faint; after all, she couldn't really harbour her crush on a four year old. She'd spent the night crying after the blonde's condition had been released. Part of her tears was from relief, she was so _happy_ Naruto was okay, but a large part of her tears was from the realisation that she would probably never, ever be with Naruto. Of course, she doubted she would've had the courage to initiate anything anyway.

"H-hello, Naru-chan." The blonde pouted at the dreaded _Naru-chan_ re-appearing, but since the Hyuuga seemed to harbour no ill-intent, he let it drop. _Unlike the mean scarecrow!_

"So, what's up? You shopping?" As the blonde looked at her curiously, her blush intensified. Hinata had followed him here, she really was quite adept at tracking at stalking the blonde now; she'd been doing it for years.

"A-ano, not really...I-I was just taking a walk. Are you?" Naruto smiled as she played with her fingers. _Typical Hinata!_

"Me and 'Kashi are shopping!" He pouted and crossed his arms. "I don't like it though. 'Don't think 'Kashi knows what he doin' either!" The Hyuga smiled gently. She didn't realise Naruto would be so cute, she hadn't met him before the academy started. It made her wonder how the villagers could've hated someone so... bright.

"W-well, I have a day off, I-I could lend you a hand?" She smiled. Hinata was proud of herself for being more confident around Naruto. If he was still his teenage self, she would've never probably confronted him. She'd decided, after crying herself silly, if she couldn't somehow be his girlfriend, she would be his friend. Maybe even a _sister_ figure.

"Oh, sure! Hey, 'Kashi! Hina-chan says she'll give us a hand!" He shouted, seeing his guardian in his peripheral vision. The jounin approached them, Icha Icha in hand, and gave the Hyuuga a friendly nod.

"Maa, that's awfully kind of you."

"O-oh, it's nothing, really..." The Jounin eye-smiled at the fumbling girl; he'd noticed her tendency to watch his charge from afar; it was just a matter of time until she'd approached the kid. He was glad with the timing.

"Well, great! Here's the money, you can handle the clothes!" He waved and promptly shunshin'd away in a puff of smoke. The pair stared blinking at the now empty spot.

"Che, stupid hentai sensei! Leaving us here! I have no idea what I need!" The Hyuuga didn't comment, but silently agreed with him. She'd never shopped for anyone but herself before.

"W-well, where should we start, Naru-chan?" It was Naruto's turn to blush and twiddle his fingers. _Oh jeez, how embarrassing!_

"Err, well sensei said to start with underwear..." He grudgingly admitted. Hinata's blush grew even more, if that's even possible. "B-but I can do that by myself! So let's just get the casual stuff for now?" He held up his hands in a gesture that said 'don't worry'. She was silently thankful, although she'd forced herself to get over her crush _(four-years-old)_, underwear was a bit too much.

Hinata looked down at the wad of cash Kakashi had given her and her eyed widened. _This is a lot of money... _

As they walked down the street, Naruto tried to enter a cheaper shop, it was a matter of habit. He'd only ever been able to afford the clothes from this particular shop- it helped that the shop owner was nice and didn't rip him off. Though, he guessed he didn't have to worry too much about that now. Everyone loved him; he was 'Kohona's saviour.'

"Ano, l-let's go to that one." He looked up curiously as Hinata guided him away from the cheap, grotty looking shop. His eyes widened as he regarded the well known, expensive apparel-only shop he'd only dreamt of entering, let alone _buying _something from.

"Uh, Hina-chan, I don't know if I can..." Sensing what the blonde was about to say, she showed him the wad of cash. His jaw fell open comically and Hinata giggled.

"Uh, nevermind! Let's go!" She blushed again as he grabbed her hand and ran to the shop. A bell jingled as they went through the doors, it was a welcoming sound. Naruto sniffed the air and smiled, it smelt of new fabric and leather. It was weird, foreign, but he welcomed the change. The other shop smelled of moth-balls. He also didn't mind the smiled sent his way by the shop assistants. _Weird, very weird._

"Hey, Hinata, what about this?" He held up a bright orange top and pouted when the Hyuuga grimaced. _What's so bad about orange?_

"A-ano, that's nice Naru-chan." She twiddled her fingers, unsure whether to give her opinion. She decided she would, her least favourite thing about Naruto was his orange obsession. Of course, she'd loved everything about him so she hadn't minded, but she'd prefer a different colour. "B-but, maybe not orange?" She scanned the area and her eyes picked up a cute, deep blue sweater. She smiled to herself. _The colour of his eyes. _"Here, t-try this one."

"Oh, uh, okay!" He dropped the orange t-shirt and picked up the sweater. He grinned upon picking it up, the material was pure heaven. _So soft!_ "I'll get this! It should be warm." He paused, suddenly thinking of something. "Hinata, should I be getting ninja clothes?" Hinata frowned.

"Ano...Naru-chan, you're not..._fighting_ are you? I mean, I don't think I-I'm comfortable with you being active in your..." She paused, unsure on how to approach the subject of his condition. "C-current bodily state." Naruto sighed and nodded. He looked so forlorn; Hinata wanted to give him a hug. He shook off his sad expression and grinned. After years of watching him, she knew the smile off by heart; it was the smile he used as a mask to hide his true feelings. Somehow, it made Hinata feel sadder.

After getting assortment of black cargo pants, blue and orange (much to Hinata's chagrin) sweaters, jeans and little shoes, they finally finished shopping. Whilst Naruto just felt exhausted, Hinata felt fulfilled. She'd picked out some extremely cute outfits for her new surrogate younger brother; another point of happiness for her. Through an hour of bickering and fussing over clothes, a new sense of kin-ship was formed with a blonde, a bond she hadn't felt with him before. True, it wasn't the bond she'd initially wanted, but she liked it just as much.

"Hey, cutie! You done?" A pretty brown-haired shop assistant smiled gleefully at the small blonde. She was internally squealing over how _cute_ he was! _I've never seen such pretty eyes! _The squealing grew when he gave her his signature foxy grin.

"Yep yep! Can I get this symbol on the back of the tops?" He fumbled for the picture in his pocket and gave her the folded piece of paper. It was the Uzumaki symbol.

"Sure you can, honey." She grabbed the pile of clothing from his and set them on the check-out desk. "Come back in twenty minutes, I'll have this done in no time!" The blonde just blinked when the shop assistant pinched his cheek before hurrying away. Hinata giggled as he palmed his reddened cheek.

"What was that about?" He tilted his head to the side. People, especially girls, had been acting weird around him since he'd woken up. _Weird!_

"Ano..t-they think you're cute." Naruto stared at Hinata as if she had two head.

"Me? Cute? Yeah right!" The thought made him laugh loudly as he skipped out the shop. Hinata smiled gently at the scene. _Cute indeed._

They had twenty minutes to kill with no idea to the whereabouts of Kakashi. They settled for wondering around with some dango. As they walked down the busy streets, with Naruto barely dodging some of the adults legs, which led to him cursing his new height, it wasn't long until something caught Naruto's eye. He stopped outside a toy-shop window and placed a small hand on the cool glass. Hinata realised she was talking to thin air and looked back to see Naruto stare longingly at a dark orange fox plushie. She smiled at the co-incidence; it was practically made for him. Sure, it may not be the most sensible thing in the world, the villagers were still a bit sensitive over the Kyuubi, but she was going to buy it anyway.

"S-stay here, Naru-chan." Naruto gazed in bewilderment as she entered the shop. _She couldn't be...? _ He didn't want to get his hopes up. She could be going in there to get a present to a relative, or even herself, there's nothing to suggest that she would be buying the teddy for _him._ He was soon proved wrong.

"H-here you go." Hinata held out the fox plushie and Naruto hesitantly grabbed it and stared at it with an unreadable expression. It made her brows furrow, did he not want it? "Ano...N-naru-chan, if you don't like it..." He cut her off.

"No, I love it. Thanks, Hinata." He smiled at her; it wasn't one of his usual grins, it was the small genuine smile he used when he was _really, really_ happy. Joy bubbled in both of their chests. "I never had a teddy before." Hinata's gaped at the boy, but he didn't notice. Whilst he was gently feeling the toy, as if it was a precious item, she felt increasingly sad. The teddy, or lack thereof, symbolised the lack of a lot of things in his first childhood; stuff she'd taken for granted. _He's never had a teddy before? But I had millions! Oh, Naruto-kun..._

"Well, we better go get the clothes and find 'Kashi!" He turned and walked away with a grin, hugging the fox plushie to his chest. Hinata shook of her emotions and followed the boy; she blushed when she saw him hugging the little fox.

"K-kawaii..." She thought she could get definitely used to the new Naruto. She sighed; she wished she could have both. She smiled. _But this one will definitely do._


	5. Chapter 5: AUTHOR NOTE

_**Papa Kakashi! Is hereby discontinued.**_

Now, I believe I owe you all an explanation.

To be honest, Papa Kakashi! was my first fic. The plot holes are far too large for me to write any more effectively without any major problems, and to be honest, the plot just disinterests me...and it's just not realistic.

The writing is mediocre, the chapters are far too short and the dialogue and reactions are poorly written.

I enjoy writing Family fics, especially with Kakashi involved, but this plot just screams weird to me. I mean, technically Naruto's still 16. He'll eventually have to turn back 16 when the time comes (or bye-bye worldy), and I just can't get that relationship dynamic though my head.

The plot is just far too **difficult**, especially for a simple family fic. I already have one _timetravel, _which is currently being rewritten, one _Canon re-write, _which has plenty KakaNaru!family-ish action if you want, and I've just entered A-level, which is basically the two last, and hardest years of school with a **ton_ of work._**

_I just thought, why waste my time of a mediocre Family fic when I can rewrite a good one?_

Therefore, I profusely apologize for abandoning this fic, but I can assure you, I won't leave it completely alone.

I'm taking major aspects of all of the little scenes in Papa Kakashi! and place them in my new story, (coming soon-ish, after my two other updates which should be around by the end of this month.)

Again, i'm very sorry and I hope you'll enjoy my other stories and my new family fic coming soon.

**There will be a completely revised(and slightly plot modifed) version coming out called:**

**Parental Prodigy**

(because I love a bitta alliteration)


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